Redias III
by spockish girl
Summary: Prequel to Risk is our Business. First contact procedures are about to start with a new planet. Something's wrong with McCoy and the Klingons are lurking...
1. Chapter 1

Dr. McCoy stared at the wall, deep in thought. He was trying hard to ignore the large stack of work he had, reports. He had just finished the crew physicals. Excluding the Captain, of course. Everyone knows that sickbays and Captains don't mix well. The Doctor picked up the stylus and stared down at the results of Ensign Misare. The two ribs that were broken a few months ago had healed nicely. A beep of his intercom alerted him. He stood up and pressed the button next to the speaker. "McCoy here."

"Dr. McCoy, please report to the briefing room, the Captain is waiting for you there." Uhura said.

"Understood." McCoy said. _The briefing room? Oh no. _The doctor looked down at the chrono. It was 10 minutes after 700 hours. _Damn it. I was supposed to be there ten minutes ago. _He quickly turned his computer off and headed down to the briefing room.

"Good morning Doctor," Jim said when the doctor came through the doors rushing to his seat.

"Sorry, I forgot about the time," The doctor mumbled.

"As, I was saying Captain, this planet has had little contact with any other species, but does have some warp capability. But in many ways, it can still be considered a primitive planet. Their medical technology is limited and they have little experience in the field. The death rate is alarmingly high, especially among children. A subspace distress call was sent exactly two point four months ago to Star Fleet Command. A plague of some sort has mutated in the past year on their planet. They require medical assistance." Spock finished.

"And Star Fleet Command believes this would be a good opportunity to start a relationship with this planet." The Captain said. It was a statement, but Spock answered it as if it were a question.

"Evidently Captain. It would be an opportunity to learn more about a culture which we know so little about." Spock said as logically and unemotionally as any Vulcan would.

"Exactly, Mr. Spock. First contact procedures to be carried out then." He turned to the Doctor. "Dr. McCoy, I'm sure you'll make the proper medical arrangements, arrange a medical team and beam down when you are ready. Mr. Spock, assemble three survey teams in the transporter room, I will be leading the 4th landing party consisting of Ensign Flores, Lieutenant Carr, Ensign Chekov, and Lieutenant Sulu. Mr. Scott you will be in Command. Mr. Sulu issue phasers and communicators to each team. Dismissed." He stood up and left the briefing room.

Jim Kirk strode down the corridor to the transporter room.

"Captain-" Spock called down after him. Kirk stopped and waited for his first officer to catch up to him.

"Doctor McCoy has not beamed down yet. The Rediasians were expecting him hours ago. I rearranged the landing parties to include the medical officers and ordered them to beam down immediately. Dr. McCoy, still, can not be reached. I was going to his quarters now, sir."

Kirk threw up his hands. "I'll go with you." Jim thought a moment and quickened his pace. _Bones might be hurt…_Spock seemed to catch on and did likewise.

They soon got to McCoy's quarters and Spock pressed the buzzer. No answer. He buzzed again. Again, there was no answer. He was about to press the buzzer again when Kirk blurted out, "Computer, security override on this door. Authorization, Kirk-alpha-two."

The doors parted to let the officers in. Kirk saw McCoy sitting at his desk in a kind of daze. "Bones?"

The doctor didn't move or show any signs of recognition.

"Bones! Snap out of it!" Kirk boomed.

The doctor blinked and looked around a minute then looked at Jim.

"Jim…what the devil happened?" He sounded confused.

"That's what I'd like to know. Spock said you didn't arrange a medical team." Jim spoke with a tone of authority. He moved around the room as he spoke. "You failed to beam down at the arranged time. You didn't make any damned preparations at all, Doctor! You weren't responding to any calls. And now, we come in here to find you in some kind of…trance." He turned around and looked at the Doctor and pointed at him. "Do you have an explanation, Doctor?"

"Gee…I'm sorry, Jim. I don't know what happened. My mind just started to drift." He sounded far away then he snapped back to attention. "I'll order a team down right now." He moved towards the comm unit.

"Spock already ordered a medical team down." He moved towards McCoy. "I want you to schedule a full psychological exam for yourself. I don't care what you do. I just want this problem solved. And soon. When you're ready, I'd like you to beam down to assist the medical efforts down on Redias. Mister Spock will join you then." Kirk was already half out the door. Spock at his heels.

"Yes, sir." Mumbled McCoy.

"Mister Spock, status report on the landing parties." Kirk said heading for the transporter room, once again.

"Three teams have beamed down, sir. Ensign Flores, Lieutenant Marcell and Ensign Rishell are waiting in the transporter room for you to join them, sir." Spock said following Kirk down the corridor.

"Alright, when McCoy is done, beam down with him. I'll contact you every fifteen minutes."

"Aye, sir." Spock said.

Kirk entered the transporter room and quickly got on the transporter pad. His team followed. "Energize." He said when everyone was on the pad.

After an hour on the planet's surface, Captain Kirk's team had collected most of their data.

"Sir, I'm detecting…strange readings. Humanoid, but they're not Rediasians or Humans, sir." Ensign Flores said nervously.

"Who are they?" Kirk asked concerned.

"Unknown, sir." She grimaced. "I can't tell." She said quietly.

Kirk reached for the tricorder. "Here. Let me see, Ensign."

"That won't be necessary, Captain!" A sharp voice yelled.

Kirk turned and found himself face to face with a Klingon disrupter.

"Drop all weapons!" The Klingon yelled. All of the officers in the landing party complied. Kirk was the last one.

"Commander," Kirk said to the Klingon. He carefully inched up the hill to stand closer to the Klingon. "Your presence…here is…an act of war. This planet is within Federation space."

The Klingon ignored him and turned slightly to speak to an officer next to him. Kirk took the opportunity to deliver a punch to the Klingon's mid section. Kirk's team quickly caught on, attacking the Klingon officers around them.

Kirk heard a high pitched whistle and turned to see Ensign Rishell and Lieutenant Marcell turn into a red haze and disappear. Kirk gasped, "No!"

This distraction cost him as he was sent hurdling from two blows. He groaned and got to his feet, refusing to show weakness. One Klingon held Ensign Flores; a disrupter leveled at her neck.

The Klingon in command mumbled to one officer and the officer moved in behind Kirk. The Klingon took his disrupter and pointed it at Kirk. And then fired.

Kirk woke up with a terrible headache. He lay on a cold stone floor. Cold…. Stone…floor? He sat up, immediately regretting the action; his arm…must be broken.

_I sure don't remember that happening_. Kirk thought to himself. He looked around. It was pitch black except for one small window in the corner.

_I thought Klingons killed their prisoners now a days_, Kirk thought. He moved closer to the corner with the window. And he came across an arm. He grabbed it and moved the body closer to the light. He gasped in horror at what he saw. It was Ensign Flores. Most definitely dead. Her eyes were glazed over and she was limp in his arms. The Klingons had beaten her to death it looked like.

Kirk swore under his breath. He moved back into the other corner and leaned against the cobblestone. This mission had gone from bad to worse.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

"Spock to Captain Kirk." Spock tried his communicator for the twenty-seventh time in an attempt to reach his Captain. A dull static came back to him in response. Spock almost felt the urge to release a human sigh. He closed his communicator and closed his long fingers around it. Looking back to his team, he returned his communicator to his belt.

He looked at the young men and women that made up his away team. They all looked to him with worried eyes. Fear was creeping into their professional Starfleet trained faces. Spock realized it was his position to clear all doubts they had.

"I am sure he must be out of contact range. We will beam back to the ship and make proper scanning procedures and locate the Captain's team. Ensign Machette, please return to the medical facility and alert Nurse Chapel of our situation and that we are beaming back to the ship. Until we know exactly what happened in the Captain's case, all non-essential landing party members will return to the ship. I want to keep the medical teams here as long as possible to assist in aiding the Rediasians."

The ensign nodded, following orders and starting off at a trot toward the medical facility. Spock turned away from the team and flipped open his communicator.

"Spock to Enterprise. Four to beam up."

Aboard the Enterprise, Doctor McCoy was studying his own medical charts. He couldn't understand his distractions. He seemed to be losing time and felt…honestly, what was this blasted thing on his desk? He picked up a small red looking stone on his bed table. He caressed it in his hands. It seemed to almost glow when he touched it. It had a black center. _Hm. Where did I get this? Must have been a gift or somethin'._ _Oh. Hell. I've done it again. My files. God. Jim is pissed at me. I'm getting even worse. I can't even do my damn job._

A beep from the comm disturbed his inner turmoil. Spock's voice filled the room without hesitation as McCoy hit the button.

"Dr. McCoy please report to conference room three immediately."

McCoy sighed. _Probably forgot to do something else._

As McCoy walked down the hallway, he almost felt eyes watching him. He turned around. No one was there. Yet he felt some kind of feeling; like someone was behind him all the time, over his shoulder, looking at everything he looked at. McCoy quickened his pace, yet the feeling remained. He walked into the conference room and the feeling followed.

"Yes, Spock?"

Spock was standing, hands clasped behind his back as usual. _That must be like a Vulcan thing, they must all stand that way, like dogs. Trained to stand up incredibly straight and all professional looking. Maybe they even had to sit like that as babies. No crawling allowed. _

"Are you listening to me, Doctor?"

"Um, sorry, Spock. My mind seems to be everywhere today."

"I have noticed." Spock sat down at the chair closest to him. "As I was saying, the Captain's team has still not been located at this time and we cannot reach him by his communicator. Scans have revealed nothing. Most of the landing parties have already beamed up as of yet, however, I have kept as many of the medical personell on the planet as I can to assist the Redisians. We have reason to believe there is a cloaked ship somewhere nearby due to strange energy reasons. We have yet to confirm it's origin. It is suspected that the ship is either Romulan or Klingon in origin. However, as I said, that cannot be definitely confirmed. I am returning back to the planet with a small security team to investigate if the Klingons or Romulans have beamed down to the surface. I need you to return with me to take charge of the medical teams. Unless…you feel that you are unfit for duty." Spock looked to the doctor, his question seemed to reach his steady brown eyes.

At that point, something seemed to take over McCoy. He was about to answer with a "I am fit for duty, sir." That was the obvious answer, he would never let Jim down. Well, he already had, but it was time to make up for that. He had to get to the surface somehow, Jim was God knows where and his whole medical staff was working down there. However, when McCoy opened his mouth to speak something seemed to take over his voice box.

"Actually Spock, I don't think I can do this. I am really not medically fit right now. So I think I'm going to take myself off duty for a while." _The hell?! I didn't just say that. Spock. I am ready for duty! What the devil is wrong with me?! _McCoy fingered something in his pocket, unwillingly. _A hypo? How did that get there…_"Actually, Spock, I think you should be off duty for a while too, you look a little tired and I know you're awfully stressed about this situation." An evil grin started to creep onto his face. McCoy started slowly feeling like he was watching his own body, watching someone else. His mind became the secondary controller and someone else was about to play doctor with Mr. Spock. "What you need is a nice rest. Here, let me help you get a goodnight sleep. Don't want you worrying too much." His own hands took a hypo out of his pocket, applying the cool tip to Spock's shoulder, Spock's last glance looking full of surprise and shock. Spock was out cold in a matter of seconds. McCoy's free hand just seemed to reach out in front of him without McCoy willing it too. It touched Spock and pushed him onto the floor with a strength McCoy didn't know he even had. This couldn't be happening. It couldn't be him. Yet he could feel the cool touch of the hypo in his hands._Must be some kind of mind control or something, someone has taken over my body, there is someone else here somewhere…or else I'm really losing my marbles. I don't even know why I did that._

McCoy started to feel his body turn and head out of the room. I don't even know where I'm going. His body seemed to know however as he moved through the transporter room doors. His hypo arched upward in his hand. His other hand took another sedative cartridge out of his pocket, putting it in the hypo and applying it to the unsuspecting transporter room technician. _Oh, God, there goes another one. At least I'm not hurtin' anyone permanently. Not that I am in control here either._ McCoy set in his coordinates. I don't even know how to work a transporter! I don't even know what coordinates these are. _Oh God. I'm becoming suicidal and I don't even know it. Oh. God. What am I doing?_ His body hurried to the transporter as the beam caught him sending to his unknown destination. _I hope for once my body knows where I'm going, 'cause I sure as hell don't. _


End file.
